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9 The Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration Shuffle
In the previous activity, “Moving Through the Carbon Cycle,” you examined
how carbon travels between reservoirs on earth. In this activity you will look
more closely at how carbon and oxygen are continuously cycled by organisms and
how these elements sustain both the
organisms and ecosystems. You will
examine what happens to carbon and
oxygen at the cellular level.
Two fundamental cellular processes
are cellular respiration and photosyn-
thesis. Cellular respiration is the
process by which cells release stored
energy from sugars. Photosynthesis is
the process in which producer cells use
carbon dioxide, water, and nutrients to
produce glucose and oxygen. Together
these two processes make the carbon
cycle possible, and move essential mol-
ecules through ecosystems.
Challenge How do carbon and oxygen cycle through the environment? 00
MATERIALS
For each group oF Four students
setof12PhotosynthesisandCellularRespirationShufflepaperstrips
For each pair oF students
computerwithInternetaccess
For each student
StudentSheet9.1,“PhotosynthesisandCellularRespirationDiagram”
All organisms in this community perform cellular respiration and some photosynthesize.
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THE PHoToSynTHESIS And CELLuLAR RESPIRATIon SHuffLE • ACTIvITy 9
Procedure 1. Complete Student Sheet 9.1, “Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration
Diagram,” as directed by your teacher.
2. Find the “Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration Shuffle” animation on the
Science and Global Issues page of the SEPUP website at sepuplhs.org/sgi. Sort
the images based on what you already know about photosynthesis and cellu-
lar respiration, and on what you can see in the images.
3. When you have completed the animation, follow your teacher’s instructions
to record the results in your science notebook.
4. Obtain the Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration Shuffle paper strips from
your teacher.
5. With your group, lay all of the strips out on the table, and read each one
aloud.
6. Sort the strips into two piles, one for cellular respiration and one for photo-
synthesis. If you are unsure about where any of the strips belong, lay them
out next to where you will be working so that you can see them as you work.
7. Choose a stack to start with. Put the strips in the order in which you think the
processes are happening.
8. Repeat Procedure Step 7 for the stack you have not ordered yet.
9. If you had any strips that you did not place, try to decide where they belong
now that you have ordered the other strips.
10. Once you have all of the strips in order, compare your strips to the results
from the animation, and make any adjustments in the order of the strips that
you need to.
Note: There are more strips than animation images, and so more than one strip
may fit with a single image.
11. Based on what you see in the animation and on the strips, write in your sci-
ence notebook a short paragraph describing cellular respiration and one
describing photosynthesis. Be sure you write in your own words, and do not
just copy the strips.
Science&GlobaliSSueS/bioloGy•ecoloGy
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Analysis 1. What does a producer need for performing photosynthesis, and what does
photosynthesis produce?
2. What does an organism need to perform cellular respiration, and what does
cellular respiration produce?
3. What roles do photosynthesis and cellular respiration have in an ecosystem?
4. Go back to your diagram on Student Sheet 9.1, “Photosynthesis and Cellular
Respiration Diagram,” and revise it, or sketch a new one based on what you
have learned in this activity. Be sure to show where enzymes are involved, as
well as carbon dioxide, water, oxygen, and glucose.
5. If someone says, “Only organisms that breathe can perform cellular respira-
tion,” are they correct? Explain.
6. If the mitochondria of half the organisms in the ecosystem stopped function-
ing, what indicators in the ecosystem would change? Explain.
7. There are specialized producers that live in warm-water vents deep in the
ocean. These producers do not perform photosynthesis, but instead perform
a similar process with iron and other chemicals. Why do you think these pro-
ducers use this process instead of photosynthesis?
KEy voCAbuLARy
cellular respiration organisms
enzymes photosynthesis
name ___________________________________________________________________________________ date __________________________
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Science & Global iSSueS/ecoloGY Student Sheet 9.1
Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration Diagram